In a Lull

I feel as if I am in a lull - not a rut (yet!) - just a lull. I have lots of things to do, and one of them is really (really, really really) urgent, but I am not feeling overly stressed about it, and have a plan B if plan A doesn't work out on time.

There are 6" squares positioned on the bed in the front room for the next quilt, there are 8" 'Drunkard's Path' pieces in a flat frozen pastry sheet box ready for the quilt after that, there is the niece's 21st quilt that I just need to have quilted (by machine), there is a knitted reindeer (many thanks to the artistic friend for that idea!) that needs thought and concentration and a few unfinished objects. Not too much to get stressed about, but enough to keep me busy.

The sales on MadeIt.com.au have dropped off dramatically (I only made two!), so there is no need to refresh my dilly bag stock at the moment. I had hoped to make decorative long legged bunnies for Easter to sell, but the really, really, really urgent project put paid to that idea - for this year at least.

Anyway, I had better go and make further progress on the urgent project (I have even brought it into work so that I can do some quilting at lunchtime!).

One project is never enough!

I just committed a fatal mistake - going to a patchwork shop with the realisation that I have very few UFOs (unfinished objects), and am therefore able to buy yet more fabric without any great feelings of guilt. The visit to the patchwork shop was a valid one - putting two of the finished quilt tops in to be quilted. Perhaps the purchase of more fabric wasn't valid, but the colours will suit my house very well, and it is quite some time since I made a quilt just for me (that's my reasoning anyway!).

I am also half-way through hand-quilting the 'wine' quilt (it has only taken a week), so another reason for the fabric purchase is that when the new quilt top is finished, I can hand-quilt this one, which will therefore give me something to do on craft nights. I have also promised a friend that if she buys whatever fabric she likes, I will make her a quilt, so that will also give me something to do and will give me the satisfaction of making a quilt, but without the cost.

The 'artistic friend', who is back from Queensland, is very involved in various stamping projects at the moment, and although I think the results are fabulous, I don't seem to have any interest and am happy just to concentrate on cutting up fabulous pieces of fabric and put them back together in a different way (which was my mother's view of patchwork).

I went back to the beach yesterday with a second lot of Krispy Kreme doughnuts, which went down very well with all the kids (teenagers), but not very well with their mother. The niece and I knew that if we had told my sister that I was bringing more doughnuts she wouldn't have let me, so we just didn't tell her! Anyway, the first dozen disappeared within the hour, and the second dozen would have gone by now - so there is really nothing for her to worry about.

The fourth day of the Australia-Pakistan 3rd cricket test has been abandoned due to rain, so my excuse for just sitting in the lounge room and watching the TV has gone. Therefore, I will now go and rescue washing from the dryer, do a small grocery shop (as I don't have anything for dinner), and possibly do some ironing. Overall, not a great way to end the day, but necessary.

Chat soon.

Accomplishments and things still to do

I love this time of year - on leave from work and able to just potter around at home and get things finished that have been on my 'to do' list for quite some time. Not just patchwork items, but gardening (was up at 8.00 a.m. this morning pruning the roses in the front yard), getting some home maintenance items attended to and visiting Spotlight on average once a day every day.

While the 'artistic friend' is sunning herself in Queensland and in addition to the items above, I have been working my fingers to the bone (!) and now have 3 quilts ready for machine quilting and 1 ready for hand quilting (which I started today). I have a great sense of accomplishment over these quilts, but as I don't want to rest on my laurels, I have started collecting ideas for another black, white and red quilt for my oldest nephew's 21st (2012). I would also like to plan a baby quilt, but as I don't know who this is for at the moment, that may have to wait.

Although I did want to start my 'birds eye view' quilt over this Christmas period, that hasn't happened, but it will give me something to work on during the year.

Oops, I almost forgot the memory quilt I am doing for a girlfriend's 50th early this year. I have pieced together all the rectangles of fabric that have been returned so far, but am still waiting for the pieces from her husband and sons, and my sister and her children. I haven't thought of what I am going to do either, but I can always just depend on the label on the back of the quilt.

I go back to work on Monday, and although I have thoroughly enjoyed my time off, I feel ready to return to the grindstone. There is still lots of stuff to do at home, but I find that I am getting bored now and need other things to distract me - and if last year was any indication, work will fit this bill very well.

I am off to the beach tomorrow to visit my sister and her children - not sure how many children will be there as the 'cricket mad' nephew with the hotted up and very loud car may still be in Melbourne playing cricket. It won't be a direct drive to the beach, as I need to stop by the airport and collect 2 dozen Krispy Kreme donuts. The niece has said that 1 dozen is never enough as one of her brothers (the cricket mad one), just inhales them!!

For all my readers, may you have a very productive year full of lots of laughs and finished projects.

Storms and the New Year

Here it is, the end of another busy year. Looking back I wonder where the time went and what I spent my time and energy on, but I am sure I enjoyed most of it.

The storms are just passing through Melbourne and I am thinking that this year, for me, was a little like this storm - a big build up (the fanfare of the new year), then the lull when the rains abate and the noise can only be heard in the distance (settling back in to work and the daily routine), followed by lots of noise, lightning and rain (the chaotic rush towards the middle of the year, and the realisation that once again, Christmas is looming large and fast), and then finally (and hopefully), the long steady downpour, with occasional flashes of lightning (the solid and steady race towards the end of the work year and another glorious Christmas).

I finished quite a few craft projects this year - a shabby chic quilt, a 21st quilt, a 50th quilt, one for an engagement (ready to be quilted), several dilly bags (aliens, Aboriginal print, rockets, spiders and fairy ballerinas), 3 pillow cases (spiders, ballet dancers and construction vehicles), quaint Craft Christmas presents, and various other items that I can't remember at the moment. I have a 50th quilt and an engagement one well underway, and then just need to get another 21st one quilted - ready for August 2010.

One project that I would like to start over the Christmas holiday period is the slash and whack quilt of a birds eye view of fields and paddocks (see the image in the post below). It will be a hit and miss quilt I think, but one that should prove quite exciting to do.

The storm is building up now, so I will take myself off to the back of the house to watch the show.

Wow - talk about inspiration .... for future quilts!!

I came across this photo whilst searching Stonehenge in England for my boss' future overseas trip. It is truly amazing - those different shapes and colours are actually fields and paddocks. I remember seeing similar patterns when flying over the Gold Coast hinterland years ago. I am mulling over in my mind a quilt to reflect this photo - probably a slash and whack, but each block would probably need to be very different from its neighbour. The second photo is of the area surrounding the Potala Palace in Tibet. Same idea, just no great variation in colour.

The blue balloons mark Stonehenge and various places of interest, including the Potala Palace in Tibet.

Progress

Well, I am pleased to advise that I took my Japanese fabric to the Monday night craft group and cut more pieces for the blocks. That's as far as I got!! I have decided that I need more fabric (of course I do!!), and as I can't get to the appropriate patchwork shop until Friday (day off - yey!), I can't do much more on this quilt. Therefore, this weekend may bring more progress in the Japanese quilt saga - or maybe not!

I know what the problem is, I have been spending far too much time on my new iPod touch and not enough time on my quilting projects. I do not feel guilty (too much) about this, as I found a great quote that fits this situation perfectly - 'Time you enjoyed wasting, is not wasted time'!! That makes me feel a whole lot better about not getting anywhere on my sister's quilt.

Eureka!! I finally have my pc back (that was a saga of its own), and although my music on iTunes still jumps when loading other programs, I can download movies onto my iPod - how cool is that?!?!?! I have just tried a music program that the IT guy loaded for me called Foobar 2000, and the music doesn't seem to jump on that - which is good - the only problem is that I can't select playlists - but I can live with that. Anything is preferable to having the music jump and stutter its way from beginning to end.

All my readers (I think there's only one of you at this stage), will be pleased to learn that I bought some more Japanese fabric today (Friday - day off), and it is now washed and ironed, and one piece is cut. I then got bored, and played with my iTouch some more!

I also finished pruning the roses in the front garden today - filled the large green wheelie bin and a separate smaller rubbish bin, and gained two blisters on my fingers (yes, I did wear gloves!) - I must just have really soft skin!! Considering the wheelie bin was emptied on Tuesday, and won't be emptied again until Tuesday week, that seems to be the end of the pruning for the moment - and a great excuse not to mow the lawn - no room to put the grass clippings.

Until next week .....

Computer programs - who needs them??

Once I had my blog page happening, I thought I would only write one blog a week, and wondered if there would be enough happening in my life, quilt wise, to be able to live up to that goal. However, after trying for what seems like hours to get a program loaded on to my computer (unsuccessfully, I might add), I decided to write another blog, because this at least is interesting and fun to do!! I also spent a couple of hours pruning the roses in my front garden, and I have the cuts and scratches onmy arms to prove it.

I still haven't made much progress on my sister's Japanese quilt (too busy on the pc and in the garden), but I know what I want to do, so it shouldn't take long. It just needs motivation - anyone have any to spare?! I have 3 quilt tops ready to be quilted - 2 by machine and 1 by hand, and none of these are really needed until next year, so I have lots of time for the Japanese quilt - I just need to start.

Once that quilt is done, I would like to do another 'bug' quilt. That looked fabulous, and I know a couple of young boys who would love it. I also have 3 pillow slips to make - 1 with spiders, 1 with construction vehicles and the other is very girly - all pink with ballerinas.

I also want to scan all the photos of my quilt into the computer, so that I can put them on my iPod and on my blog page. Therefore, I should have lots to talk about in future blogs.

And about the computer, I have had enough - I will take it to the computer guy on Monday and see what he can do.

Quilts as gifts

I can't believe this worked! After one aborted effort of getting a name on my dashboard that I didn't like, I am now happy with everything, and it was easier than I first thought.

My sister laughs at me every time an event happens (birth, significant birthday, any other reasonable excuse), because I make a quilt to mark the event. I have made quilts for births, for weddings, for birthdays, for the fun of it, and with bugs, stars, shabby chic, guitars, cars, cats, cartoon heroes and Japanese fabrics, just because I can! I would much prefer to be sewing than out in the garden pulling out weeds. Some friends can't see the point of cutting up a 'perfectly good piece of fabric' and then putting it back together. I love it. I love the creative freedom it gives me. There are no rules. You can put spots with stripes and florals, and it does work! Quilts made of a varied design pattern generally look a lot better than those with just all florals, or all spots or all stripes. In my mind anyway.

I also like giving a quilt as a present - to me it says so much more when a present is hand made. Time, effort and thought has gone into that gift, and that usually means as much as the gift itself.

As you can see from the photos, I am not as artistic as a friend of mine who presents her quilts draped over various objects. Mine are just hung over my couch, so that the whole quilt can be seen.

I have a day off tomorrow, so I must make a start on a Japanese quilt - this time for my sister's 50th birthday!